Head of Ukraine's Presidential Office, General-Lieutenant Kirill Budanov shared his views on the Russia-Ukraine war's progress and possible peace negotiations in an interview with RBK-Ukraine.
Budanov stated that although tensions between the parties are currently rising, he hopes that negotiations will resume in the future.
"There is hope. The talks were going well during the summer months. Now both sides are escalating tensions and everyone understands this. Usually, after tensions reach their peak, the situation calms down and then negotiations resume later. If the parties want that."
According to Budanov, Russia will eventually become interested in negotiations.
Commenting on a possible visit to Kyiv by US representatives Steve Wittkoff and Gerard Kushner, K. Budanov noted that this visit has already been postponed several times.
"The main issue is not the visit itself. What matters is what result it will lead to. If the goal is to end the war, then the format in which the visit takes place is not that important."
Meanwhile, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia demands Ukraine withdraw its troops from Donetsk region within two months during negotiations.
According to Zelensky, the Russian side claims it will take full control of Ukraine's east and Donbas within two months. For this reason, Ukraine has been given two months to withdraw its troops from the region, otherwise Donbas will be taken over and harsher conditions will be put forward.
The US Institute for the Study of War (ISW), in its latest report, noted that the pace of Russian army attacks has slowed compared to previous periods. According to analysts, this is because Ukraine's Armed Forces have been unable to counter Russian attacks in various directions of the front for an extended period.